im Brown stood at the farmer's door—
'I want a job,' he said.
'Well, lad, have you done aught before?'
But Jim just shook his head;
An idler boy he'd always been
Than any in the village seen.
'Well, tell me now, what can you do?'
'Oh, anything,' said Jim.
'Oh, anything!' said Farmer Grey;
Then looking hard at him—
'Well, drive these pigs to neighbour Pratt—
'Tis time they went, they're prime and fat.'
Jim drove the pigs from out the yard,
But, ere they'd gone a mile,
One pig went squealing down the road,
And one towards a stile;
And while Jim pondered what to do,
The naughty pig just wriggled through.
Just then the farmer chanced to pass;
'Hullo!' said he, 'what's wrong?'
And when he saw Jim's downcast face,
He laughed both loud and long.
'My lad,' said he, with knowing wink,
'You're not as clever as you think.'
C. D. Bogle.
TORN TO RAGS.
The curious and interesting 'little ways' of Ferdinand de Lesseps, the designer of the Suez Canal, gained for him the favour of many prominent Egyptian officials, when he was in Egypt, and he was often able to get over a difficulty and do a kind act by unusual means. Among his duties was the inspection of a large number of convicts in the Egyptian galleys. Some of these were political prisoners—rather more than four hundred unfortunate Syrians, who had been brought from Syria by Ibrahim Pasha, son of Mehemet Ali, the famous Viceroy.
The Syrian prisoners begged the French count to help them to freedom. De Lesseps had no real power to do this, but he had a kind heart, and did his best to procure the release of the prisoners.
When, however, he mentioned the subject to Mehemet Ali, the Viceroy shook his head.